Larry Rosen (May 25, 1940 – October 9, 2015) was an American entrepreneur, producer, musician, and recording engineer.

Life

Rosen was born in The Bronx, New York and was raised in

Dumont, New Jersey Dumont is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 17,479,"Innovative jazz producer Larry Rosen of Park Ridge dies at 75"
''

The Record (Bergen County) ''The Record'' (also called ''The North Jersey Record'', ''The Bergen Record'', ''The Sunday Record'' (Sunday edition) and formerly ''The Bergen Evening Record'') is a newspaper in New Jersey, United States. Serving Bergen, Essex, Hudson and ...

'', October 9, 2015, updated October 11, 2015. Accessed October 12, 2015. "Mr. Rosen, a Bronx native who grew up in Dumont, died surrounded by his family in his home in Park Ridge, his publicist, Sheryl Feuerstein, said." He began his musical career as a drummer with the Newport Youth Band, meeting eventual partner Dave Grusin while working with singer

Andy Williams Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...

and attending the

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in m ...

. In 1972, Grusin and Rosen produced vocalist Jon Lucien for RCA Records; Grusin/Rosen Productions would evolve from freelance production team to performer-centric jazz label over the next few years, discovering- and developing homegrown talent like

Patti Austin Patti Austin (born August 10, 1950) is an American R&B, pop, and jazz singer and songwriter. Music career Austin was born in Harlem, New York, to Gordon Austin, a jazz trombonist. She was raised in Bay Shore, New York on Long Island. Quincy ...

Lee Ritenour Lee Mack Ritenour ( ; born January 11, 1952) is an American jazz guitarist who has been active since the late 1960s. Biography Ritenour was born on January 11, 1952, in Los Angeles, California, United States. At the age of eight he started play ...

Earl Klugh Earl Klugh ( ; born September 16, 1953) is an American acoustic guitarist and composer. He has won one Grammy award and thirteen nominations. Klugh was awarded the “1977” Best Recording Award For Performance and Sound” for his album “Fin ...

, and Noel Pointer along the way. In 1978, Grusin/Rosen Productions signed a long-term development deal with

Arista Records Arista Records () is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously handled by BMG Entertain ...

president

Clive Davis Clive Jay Davis (born April 4, 1932) is an American record producer, A&R executive, record executive, and lawyer. He has won five Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a non-performer, in 2000. From 1967 to 19 ...

. It was a prolific collaboration, with albums from Dave Valentin, Angela Bofill, Bernard Wright, and Tom Browne—whose hit single "Funkin' For Jamaica" reached number one on Billboard's R&B and Jazz charts—forming the basis of a breakout catalog. Arista/GRP outperformed commercial expectations and redefined the boutique American jazz label. Rosen used the opportunity to advance the state of the art, engineering- and co-producing the Dave Grusin album ''Mountain Dance''—the first- digitally recorded non-classical album—in 1979. Their obligations to Davis fulfilled, Grusin and Rosen established GRP Records, Inc., in 1982 as the Arista contract expired. Under their dual proprietorship, Rosen's personal enthusiasm for digital recording was translated into a corporate mission. Their pioneering "all digital" approach—releasing their entire catalog on Compact Disc—helped launch the format in the United States. GRP Records was recognized as ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' magazine's #1 Contemporary Jazz label for five consecutive years while its artists were nominated for over 80 Grammy Awards, winning 33. GRP's artist roster grew to include many notable artists including

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz composer, pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain", " 500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba", and ...

Diana Krall Diana Jean Krall (born November 16, 1964) is a Canadian jazz pianist and singer known for her contralto vocals. She has sold more than 15 million albums worldwide, including over six million in the US. On December 11, 2009, ''Billboard'' maga ...

Dr. John Malcolm John Rebennack Jr. (November 20, 1941 – June 6, 2019), better known by his stage name Dr. John, was an American singer and songwriter. His music encompassed New Orleans blues, jazz, funk, and R&B. Active as a session musician from ...

Diane Schuur Diane Joan Schuur (born December 10, 1953), nicknamed "Deedles", is an American jazz singer and pianist. As of 2015, Schuur had released 23 albums, and had extended her jazz repertoire to include essences of Latin, gospel, pop and country musi ...

, Dave Grusin,

Gary Burton Gary Burton (born January 23, 1943) is an American jazz vibraphonist, composer, and educator. Burton developed a pianistic style of four-mallet technique as an alternative to the prevailing two-mallet technique. This approach caused him to be h ...

, B.B. King, Arturo Sandoval,

Michael Brecker Michael Leonard Brecker (March 29, 1949 – January 13, 2007) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. He was awarded 15 Grammy Awards as both performer and composer. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Berklee College of M ...

Randy Brecker Randal Edward Brecker (born November 27, 1945) is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, and composer. His versatility has made him a popular studio musician who has recorded with acts in jazz, rock, and R&B. Early life Brecker was born on No ...

, and Kevin Eubanks. By 1990, Rosen and Grusin sold GRP Records to the Universal Music Group with Rosen remaining as President & CEO of the label. As part of the larger merged company, Rosen launched the CD reissue series drawing on the Impulse!,

Chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to dist ...

, and American Decca back catalog, and helped shape Universal's

international business development International business development evolves through the normal processes of trade, foreign direct investment, capital flows, migration, and the advancement of technology in undeveloped nations. In order to achieve sustainable global business develop ...

. GRP was recognized on October 17, 1992 by ''Billboard'' magazine with an extensive feature commemorating its 10th Anniversary. After leaving GRP in 1995, Rosen co-founded one of the first Internet e-commerce and content companies, N2K, Inc. (NASDAQ), in 1997. Serving as its chairman and CEO, Rosen led the company to an IPO offering. In addition to its online music store, Music Boulevard, N2K produced a number of genre-based community sites (Rocktropolis, Jazz Central Station, Classical Insites) and artist sites for

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

, and

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically dr ...

. N2K was also a digital music distribution pioneer, offering the first digital downloads in late 1996 including music by Richard Barone and others. At the height of the Internet boom in 1999, Rosen formed the plan to merge N2K Inc. with one of its main rivals, CDNow Inc., and appeared on the cover of ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' magazine in July 1998. In 1998, Rosen received Ernst and Young's Entrepreneur of the Year Award in New Media and Entertainment. Rosen was the chairman of Larry Rosen Productions, where he created and produced the PBS television HD series '' Legends of Jazz'' with pianist Ramsey Lewis. Additionally, he is the creator and producer of the seven part television series titled ''Recording: The History of Recorded Music'', with hosts

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

and

Phil Ramone Philip Ramone (né Rabinowitz, January 5, 1934March 30, 2013) was a South African-born American recording engineer, record producer, violinist and composer, who in 1958 co-founded A & R Recording, Inc., a recording studio with business ...

. In 2008, Rosen created "Jazz Roots - A Larry Rosen Jazz Series," a concert and educational program created for performing arts centers. Jazz Roots found its first home at the Adrienne Arsht Center in Miami, Florida, opened in Dallas, Texas (AT&T Performing Arts Center) as well as the Carmel, Indiana Performing Arts Center in 2010. Artists presented include

Dave Brubeck David Warren Brubeck (; December 6, 1920 – December 5, 2012) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Often regarded as a foremost exponent of cool jazz, Brubeck's work is characterized by unusual time signatures and superimposing contrasti ...

Sonny Rollins Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. In a seven-decade career, he has recorded over sixty albums as a ...

, Paquito D’Rivera, John McLaughlin, Ramsey Lewis, Arturo Sandoval,

Eliane Elias Eliane Elias
BrowseBiography.com, 20 November 2011; retrieved 10 September 2014. is a Brazilian

Buddy Guy George "Buddy" Guy (born July 30, 1936) is an American blues guitarist and singer. He is an exponent of Chicago blues who has influenced generations of guitarists including Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Stevie Ray Vaugh ...

, Manhattan Transfer,

Al Jarreau Alwin Lopez Jarreau (March 12, 1940 – February 12, 2017) was an American singer and musician. His 1981 album '' Breakin' Away'' spent two years on the ''Billboard'' 200 and is considered one of the finest examples of the Los Angeles pop and R ...

Jon Hendricks John Carl Hendricks (September 16, 1921 – November 22, 2017), known professionally as Jon Hendricks, was an American jazz lyricist and singer. He is one of the originators of vocalese, which adds lyrics to existing instrumental songs and re ...

, Eddie Palmieri and Michel Camilo. As a companion to the series, Rosen is the host of the locally presented NPR radio series ''Jazz Root''s. Rosen was married to Hazel Ruben from 1965 to 2015. Rosen died at his home in Park Ridge, New Jersey at the age of 75 on October 9, 2015.Associated Press, Obit Larry Rosen)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rosen, Larry 1940 births American classical musicians American jazz musicians 2015 deaths Jewish American musicians People from the Bronx People from Dumont, New Jersey People from Park Ridge, New Jersey Record producers from New York (state) Manhattan School of Music alumni Jazz musicians from New York (state) 21st-century American Jews